Unflinching, funny, shocking, inspiring and tender: this is a story like no other.

Alannah Hill, one of Australia's most successful fashion designers, created an international fashion brand that defied trends with ornamental, sophisticated elegance, beads, bows and vintage florals. But growing up in a milk bar in Tasmania, Alannah's childhood was one of hardship, fear and abuse. At an early age she ran away from home with eight suitcases of costumes and a fierce determination to succeed, haunted by her mother's refrain of 'You'll never amount to anything, you can't sew, nobody likes you and you're going to end up in a shallow grave, dear!'

At the height of her success, Alannah walked the razor's edge between two identities - the 'good' Alannah and the 'mongrel bastard' Alannah. Who was the real Alannah Hill? Reprieve came in the form of a baby boy and the realisation that becoming a mother not only changes your life, but completely refurbishes it, forever.

Yet 'having it all' turned out to be another illusion. In 2013 Alannah walked away from her eponymous brand, a departure that left her coming apart at the seams. She slowly came to understand the only way she could move forward was to go back. At the heart of it all was her mother, whose loveless marriage and disappointment in life had a powerful and long-lasting effect on her daughter. It was finally time to call a truce with the past.

This extraordinary book is the fierce and intelligent account of how a freckle-faced teenage runaway metamorphosed into a trailblazer and true original.

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Author description

Alannah Hill was born on an apple orchard in Geeveston, Tasmania and moved to Melbourne when she was a teenager. Her iconic, ornamental style has made her one of Australia's most well-known fashion designers. After a split with her financial partner Factory X in 2012, Alannah walked away from her eponymous brand. Alannah now designs clothes with her new brand Louise Love, and is an ambassador for the Alannah and Madeline Foundation of Australia.